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Structure: Humanoid
Avg. Height: 5-6 feet
Avg. Weight: 100-200 pounds, but highly variable
Genders: Just two, male and female
Physical Features: Round ears, no fangs, only vestigal tailbones. Very apelike.
Skin Colors: All variations of brown. Albinos are very rare.
Hair Colors: Black, Brown, Blonde, Red, Gray/White (only in the elderly)
Eye Colors: Brown, Blue, Green, Gray, very rarely Purple
Magic: Naturally low, but can be trained to great power
Powers: Advanced brainpower, highly developed hands with opposable thumbs
Intelligence: High
Strength: Average
Homeland: Patria

Origins: According to Patrian legend, all life sprang from the Planet Goddess, Somna. Her favorite children were the Humans, whom she made to fit her personal idea of perfection. Of all the intelligent races, Somna gave the Humans the richest farmland and the grandest kingdom. However, Somna was a fickle woman who also allowed the Humans to experience death. Feeling that they were betrayed by their creator, the Humans rebelled against Somna. Patros, the first king of the Human race, slayed Somna, and scattered her blood across the fields of his kingdom to fertilize their crops forevermore. Her preserved head is said to be kept in a dungeon beneath the castle of Patria, but the Patrian capital had been relocated and rebuilt so many times that the exact location of the alledged dungeon is a mystery.

Because it was a human man that overthrew the goddess Somna, the Patrian humans believe that they are the true rulers of the natural world. The exploitation of natural resources and other races are justified in a sort of manifest destiny. In recent years, small cults have arisen in protest of the Patrian government. Instead of upholding the glory of man and the Patrian kingdom, they worship and mourn the memory of the deceased Somna.

Culture: The human race resides almost exclusively in the costal kingdom of Patria. Humans are known to live in countries populated by the other races, and some humans have traveled to other continents, attempting to create new settlements. However, these are the exception, not the rule. Patria is primarily an agricultural society, with about 75% of the population engaged in farming. However, one mustn't mistake Patria for a nation of simpletons. The Patrians are very resourceful and inventive, and have manipulated nature to better benefit their ends. Patria's vast farmland was once dense forest, before the Patrians cleared the land and reshaped it into a flat plain crisscrossed with irrigation channels. Their livestock have been selectively bred over countless generations to produce the most milk, eggs, meat, and wool. The urban population (centered in the capital, Amicitia, and a border fortress town, Moenia) is granted the luxury of fresh, clean water whenever they want, and fabulous mechanical carts that can take you anywhere with the turn of a wheel. The environmental damage caused by their progress is not yet foreseen.

The Patrians trade heavily with the other races, sometimes taking advantage of their less developed cultures. The Patrian aristocracy create a high demand for exotic novelties from the Elfs, and Patrian physicians are strong supporters of Po-Kai natural medicine. Patrian merchants travelling from country to country are sometimes a small town's only source of news from the outside world.

There is one major Patrian religion, simply referred to as 'Patrian.' The Patrian religion is closely controlled by the Patrian government, a patriarchal monarchy. The general mythology is based around the life of Patros, the first king of the humans, who was created by the goddess Somna, whom he then slayed. Somna is portrayed as a two-faced person, who projects the outward appearance of a loving, motherly creator, but in truth has no sympathy for the humans she created, and allowed them to die. Patros was a hero who knew could see through her treachery and understood the value of punishment. These characteristics are projected onto all women and men respectively.

Because the Patrian religion villainizes women, Patrian culture is very misogynistic. Women are said to be untrustworthy, even evil, while men are the standard of moral righteousness. However, this viewpoint is upheld mainly by fundamentalist, evangelical male monks who, frankly, have no idea what females are like. In practice, women are treated much more fairly. Although they are not allowed to own land nor hold formal leadership positions, they are often an important part of the family household, a large fraction of the agricultural workforce, and an influential presence in the marketplace.

A minority religion has appeared in Patria in the most recent decades. A small sect of scholars, having studied and reinterpreted old Patrian religious texts, decided that the original story of Somna and Patros was very different than what the mainstream now believed. They felt that Somna was in fact a caring creator, who had her reasons for allowing mortal men to experience suffering. This idea has attracted a good number of rebellious urban youths, now known as the Sympathist Movement, who reject the current ideals of Patrian society. They promote the idea of chivalry, treating women as sacred objects to be cherished. The Sympathist Movement is still very small, consisting of about two percent of the human population, and is treated with ridicule.

Allies and Enemies:

Elfs- The Humans and the Elfs have a long-standing, but uneasy partnership with each other. The Humans respect and revere Elfin knowledge and craftmanship, but feel that they are foolish for not adopting the Human philosophy of imperialism and capitalism. The Elfs give credit to the Humans' ingenuity and military might, but look upon them with sadness, feeling that their disregard of the natural world will be their downfall. Elfin craftsmen are one of the most financially secure demographics in all of Somnium, for Human aristocrats would pay any price for their works.

Neither race is dependant on the other for its well-being, and if the two ever dropped their alliance and went to war against each other, the result may well be mutual assured destruction.

Faerys- The Humans view Faerys with ridiculous superstition. They tend to blame Faerys for every misfortune; droughts, miscarriages, broken toys, sick livestock, and even divorces are blamed on the work of ill-meaning Faerys. Conversely, many Human childrens' stories involve the magic and splendor of benevolent Faery godparents, Faery princesses, and other mischevious but ultimately good companions to Humans. In truth, the Faerys often live amongst Humans, but keep to themselves, unseen to all but a select few that the Faerys have taken a liking to. They generally regard Humans as being simply...'there.' Of course, every Faery is different, and it is indeed possible to gain one's ire and be placed under a powerful curse.

Some people believe that Human-sized Faerys live amongst the Humans, hiding their wings so that they may appear as Elves.

Nagas- Patria, the Human homeland, holds Lacerta, the Naga homeland, as a colony of sorts. The Lacertans are given a generous degree of autonomy, and the Patrian army will be mobilized to protect Lacerta if it were ever threatened by outside forces. In return, the Humans use Lacerta's resources to boost its own economic power. Lacertan dragonskin is a valuable commodity. Many Naga tribes are under the sponsorship of independant Human merchants who buy their leatherwork, and pay them in grain and other supplies. Currently, the system works surprisingly well. Minimal contact between the two prevents the loss of Lacertan culture and rights. The Human merchants often encourage the Nagas to increase their Minotaur Dragon herds, which could be harmful to their grazing pastures, but the Nagas so far have been able to resist this pressure. However, some Patrian politicians are pushing for greater involvement in Lacerta, perhaps to the point of true colonization, with Humans moving into Naga lands.

Po-Kai- Human physicians hold a deep respect for the Po-Kai and their natural medicines, and Po-Kai textiles are becoming increasingly popular amongs Patria's upper-middle class. Patria has made many attempts to take the Hau-Pei-Tse into its control, much like the relationship between Patria and Lacerta. However, the Po-Kai have successfully resisted the imperialist advance. The Humans generally consider the Po-Kai to be incredibly stubborn, antisocial, and merely half-civilized. The Po-Kai are always suspicious of Human visitors to their villages, and rarely show true hospitality towards the Humans. They still trade with Human merchants, however, because they feel it is to their advantage.

Ghoblings- The Ghoblings of Maligo treat all outsiders indiscriminately, hunting them all down with unprejuduced savage glee. The Humans consider Maligo to be a cursed place and avoid it whenever possible. Only a small sect of the Patrian religion has made any attempt at contacting the Ghoblings, and with mixed results. Most missionaries that settled on Maligo were killed off within months. Those who survived were miraculously able to convert some of the Ghoblings to not only Patrian religion but also Human culture. These converts, the Hobghoblings, try to emulate the Humans in every possible way. Many of them now live in the forests of Patria, but are not fully accepted by the Humans, who see them as no different from their wild cousins.

Unica- The Unica are considered to be Humans that have mutated into a subspecies, and thus are given hospitality that Patria has not extended towards any other race. Even the Elves are looked upon with some suspicion, but the Unica are considered brothers. Many Humans mistakenly believe that Unica is a state that any Human can achieve by simply drinking the blood of the unicorns of Solitudo Valley. However, the Unica gained their powers through generations of contact with unicorn magic, and no Human has ever been able to turn into a Unica.
Solitudo Valley is considered to be a 'little brother' to Patria, more like a backwoods province than its own nation. Human merchants enter the valley without fear, and certain adventurous aristocrats consider it an exciting and exotic vacation spot. In general, most Patrians look apon the Unica culture as an antiquated, unevolved offshoot of ancient Patrian culture, and the Unica are just hillbillies with powers. The Unica think that the Humans are very nice, but strange. Few Unica ever consider leaving Solitudo Valley, and they do not concern themselves with the goings-on of the Humans that don't directly affect them.